Target CEO Cornell apologizes to customers

A shopper at Nicollet Mall finally made it through long lines on Saturday

Target Corp. chief executive Brian Cornell apologized to consumers Wednesday for what he called “a difficult weekend,” in his first public comments since cash registers at stores went down for a couple of hours on Saturday and a credit card glitch prevented sales on Sunday.

“Obviously a tough weekend,” he told CNBC during an interview at Hazeltine Golf Club in Chaska, site of the KPMG Women’s PGA championship this week. “Tough for our brand and really disappointing to our guests. So I need to apologize to the thousands of guests who were shopping our stores on Saturday and again on Sunday.”

Various analysts have speculated that glitches, which happened during busy afternoons on Father's Day weekend, could have cost the company $50 million to $100 million in lost sales. But Cornell told the network that it wasn’t enough of a hit to impact profitability.

“The real question, is it going to change our guidance for the second quarter?" Cornell said, "And the answer is no.”

In May, Target forecast low- to mid-single digit growth in comparable store sales during the second quarter, with earnings per share of $1.52 to $1.72.